Terrorized by a Mutated Chimpanzee

“Even if Caesar broke through all the security and escaped, he couldn’t possibly find you,” she said.

“The institute is hundreds of kilometers away. It takes hours to drive there, no way he could make his way to your home.”

“I think you’re just being soft. You begged to come see Caesar every day and now that you have, you’re scared?”

Her confidence and teasing finally eased my nerves.

After saying goodbye, I drove back home.

But I hadn’t expected to be woken up by my best friend’s call at three in the morning.

She said that somehow, the chimpanzee had stolen the guard’s key, released all the animals and shut down the monitoring and infrared systems.

The entire institute was in chaos.

I gulped, unsure how to respond.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning lit the sky, followed by thunder and then heavy rain poured outside the window.

A moment later, loud banging echoed from my front door, so forceful that I nearly fell out of bed.

My best friend must have heard the noise, because she fell silent for a moment, then tried to reassure me again.

“Jessica, I’m just kidding, don’t be scared.”

“Even if Caesar escaped, he definitely couldn’t have found you. The tracker must be malfunctioning. With this storm, there's no GPS signal and even if it had an address, it wouldn’t be able to find your house.”

“Don’t you live with your boyfriend? He’s there, you’ll be fine.”

I screamed, “My boyfriend is on a business trip! He won’t be back until tomorrow!”

If I waited for him to save me, I’d be dead before he arrived.

The banging outside grew more urgent.

Still clinging to a sliver of hope, I tiptoed toward the door.

Maybe, just maybe, it was my boyfriend, back early and playing a prank.

I leaned in to look through the peephole, but it was pitch black outside.

And then, I heard a heartbeat.

“Am I not pretending enough? Why doesn’t she open the door?”

“If she won’t open it, I’ll have to bang harder.”

“No, I have to hold back. If I scare her, I’ll ruin the skin.”

A cold sweat broke over me. I pressed my back against the wall, trying not to make a sound.

Then I crept to the window, using the noise of the rain to cover my voice and whispered, “Sophia, Caesar… that gorilla… it’s right outside my door…”

“And my boyfriend’s not home tonight. Please do something!”

My boyfriend and I lived in a small apartment, with no partitions, just a combined bedroom and living area.

The door was a flimsy, standard model.

With Caesar’s strength, he could smash its way in easily.

I was panicked.

How had he found my address? How did he get here through a storm?

This was unbelievable, could he actually understand human language?

My best friend quickly tried to calm me.

“Don’t worry. The institute’s security team is already on their way, but the weather might slow them down.”

“All you need to do is stay inside and wait for help.”

“That chimpanzee is smart. Don’t provoke him!”

I was on the verge of tears.

“How long will it take? I don’t think my door’s going to hold much longer!”

She grew anxious too.

“Why don’t I send my brother over first? He lives near your place!”

“Don’t be afraid, even the smartest animal can’t resist an electric baton!”